The Roanoke Times newspaper contained an Associated Press article today (June 25, 2007) entitled “Drug-Resistant Staph Superbug Increasingly Prevalent, Study Says.”
The article is about the shocking numbers of hospital and nursing home patients who are becoming sick with Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), which cannot be controlled by normal antibiotics. A survey released by the Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology reveals that at least 30,000 hospital patients may have this superbug at any one time.
The article stresses the need for better hygiene in all health care settings. Maybe we, as consumers of healthcare, should be asking our doctors and nurses to wash their hands and use protective equipment more frequently.